Overview of key economic events in Saudi Arabia during Q3 2022

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's flag

The Saudi economy witnessed several significant events in Q3 2022, including a royal decree last month that named Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as the Prime Minister in a Cabinet reshuffle.

During the third quarter, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also announced the designs of THE LINE in NEOM mega city, launched infrastructure works and masterplan for Rua Al Madinah Project and unveiled the National Gaming and Esports Strategy.

Further, the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) raised the reverse repo rate from 175 basis points (bps) to 325 bps, and the repo rate from 225 bps to 375 bps in two rounds.

Oil prices slumped to their lowest levels year-to-date (YTD) to $85 per barrel, amid concerns regarding the global economic recession and crude supply developments.

The following is a breakdown of all the events that took place in Q3:

1) On July 4, the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul) launched the single stock futures (SSFs) contracts, which will be cleared by the Securities Clearing Center Co. (Muqassa).

2) Also in July, King Salman issued a royal order approving an allocation of SAR 20 billion as financial support to cushion the impact of rising global prices.

3) On July 25, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the Chairman of NEOM, announced the designs of THE LINE, a civilizational revolution that puts humans first, providing an unprecedented urban living experience while preserving the surrounding nature.

4) The Cabinet, chaired by King Salman, greenlit on Aug. 2, the establishment of Saudi Investment Promotion Authority (SIPA) and Roads General Authority (RGA).

5) Also in August, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) launched the Saudi Egyptian Investment Company (SEIC) to invest in promising sectors throughout Egypt, one of the world’s emerging markets.

6) Late in August, the Cabinet approved the Tourism Law and gave the green light for transferring the ownership of assets, as well as financial and contractual liabilities and rights related to healthcare services provided by the Ministry of Health, to Health Holding Co. (HHC) or any of its subsidiaries.

7) In addition, Crown Prince also launched infrastructure works and masterplan for Rua Al Madinah Project, spanning 1.5 million square meters (sqm), to add over 47,000 hotel rooms by 2030.

8) Saudi Arabia submitted a bid to Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions to host “World Expo 2030”, as the submission period ended on Sept. 7.  

9) The PIF launched the National Real Estate Registration Services Company (RER) that will work with the Real Estate General Authority and other government entities to build a comprehensive real estate registration database covering data on property units in Saudi Arabia.

10) Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled the National Gaming and Esports Strategy that aims to make Saudi Arabia the global hub for the gaming and e-sports sector by 2030.

11) The Cabinet, chaired by King Salman, approved on Sept. 20 the transformation of Jeddah Projects Management Office into Jeddah Development Authority.

12) SAMA raised the reverse repo rate from 175 bps to 325 bps, and the repo rate from 225 bps to 375 bps in two rounds.

13) In September, the Capital Market Authority (CMA) approved amending the rules stipulating the conditions and requirements for the registration of debt instruments offered by way of private placement for the purpose of direct listing on the Saudi Exchange.

14) Oil prices slumped to their lowest levels year-to-date (YTD) below $85 per barrel, amid concerns regarding the global economic recession and the crude supply.

15) King Salman named Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman the Prime Minister in a Cabinet reshuffle by a royal decree.

16) The Crown Prince unveiled the Savvy Games Group’s strategy, which is set to invest SAR 142 billion across four programs.

17) In its 2023 preliminary budget statement issued early in October, Saudi Arabia estimated public revenue at SAR 1.12 trillion, SAR 1.11 trillion in expenditure, and SAR 9 billion in budget surplus.